Running of the Reindeer

Since Spain has the Running of the Bulls... Alaska had to do the same... but with a twist: using reindeer instead of bulls. And guess who came up with the idea to put on a yearly event like this one? None other than Bob Lester! Bob serves on the Board of Fur Rendezvous (nicknamed Rondy) which is a two week long festival revolving around the Iditarod. Rondy has been around since statehood but it had not been doing so well over the past few years -- Bob's idea for Running of the Reindeer helped revive it. This year made the 2nd annual race and my friend/co-worker Ashton came to hang out with me while Bob emceed. Because of my connection (wink wink), we didn't have to brave the crowds to see the event.

Unlike bulls, reindeer are very timid and scare easily. Participants race two blocks with the reindeer running amongst them -- the poor things are probably terrified! But hey, it's entertaining to watch!